The Seventh Faerie: Chapter Three
Fic title: The Seventh Faerie
Author name: seramercury
Artist name: tzeni17
Genre: Het, AU
Pairing: Dean/Jo
Rating: R
Word count: 20,154 words
Warnings: language, violence, implied sexual assault
Summary: Dean Winchester and Jo Harvelle have finally found happiness--together. The Yellow-Eyed Demon is dead and things are starting to feel normal for a change. That is, until a new evil threatens to erase everything they hold dear--their relationship, their families, and their very lives.
"You didn't think I would find out did you, Niehart?" Musgrave asked. "Your daughter is as cunning as her father. I should have realized from the start that she would align herself with the human. After all, it is what her mother did."
Niehart glared at him. "You stay away from Flora and you stay away from the humans! She was able to convince the council to call the Changeling back. The human female will be returned immediately."
"Oh she did, did she?"
"She did and that means you can no longer act the way you have been," Niehart told him. "Or you will be going against the will of the council!”
Musgrave nodded as he bowed, a smirk itching to make its way to the surface of his face. He would let it go for now and once their guard was down, he would go after Dean Winchester himself, even if it was the last thing he did.
"Very well, Niehart. I will obey the council's wishes.”
*****
Meanwhile Flora had gone to check on Jo. The young human was waking up from her slumber. She looked decidedly pale and distressed. Flora knew her people were to blame and she felt horrible about it.
Taking a deep breath, she called the human by her name. Jo's head snapped up and when she saw Flora there, she glared at the faerie. "You did this! It's your fault Dean is dead!"
"No! He is not!" Flora replied. "He is very much alive and my people are going to send you back to him!"
Jo sat quietly staring at Flora as if she were trying to see through any lies the faerie was hiding. After a moment Jo was finally convinced that she was telling the truth. "Please! Send me back now!"
Flora nodded. "Good bye, Jo, and I really am sorry."
"Thank you," Jo replied with a frown and then she was gone.
*****
Dean's fever broke the next morning. When he woke up he saw Sam, Ellen, Bobby, and Fiona fast asleep on chairs all around him. Realizing the need to answer the call of nature, Dean slowly got to up, taking care not to jar his injured thigh by tripping over Sam's big feet.
While he was in the bathroom Dean decided a shower would probably help clear the cobwebs in his mind. Once that was finished, he sneaked back into the main room, grabbed some clothes, and got dressed. By the time he was finished he felt more awake than ever. Suddenly he remembered everything. It was way too hot in the room so Dean limped to the door and went outside. The moment he did, Jo appeared before him.
"Dean!" she exclaimed, wrapping her arms around him, not noticing his distress.
Dean quickly shoved her away as he took a few more steps back only to be trapped against the door. His eyes widened, stunned. "No! You're not Jo! She's dead!"
"No, I'm not, Dean! It's me! Do whatever tests you need to do to prove it, but I'm really here."
Dean again reached into his car for holy water and tossed it on her. He slowly took a step closer, wanting to hope but scared of what would happen if this really were the Changeling.
Nothing happened and Jo smiled. Dean was almost touching her face when Jo stepped forward and he wrapped his arms around her. "I am so sorry, Jo!"
"For what?" she asked, holding him tightly.
“Because I… because of what I did to you.”
She pulled him away slightly so that she was looking into his eyes. “Dean, you trust me, right?” He nodded. “Then listen to me when I say that whatever you started to remember never happened! You didn’t rape me! You would never hurt me and we both know it, right?”
Dean swallowed around the lump in his throat as he nodded again. "I know," he replied. "I love you!"
"I love you too," Jo told him.
Just then everyone took that moment to come outside. "Dean!" Sam exclaimed. His eyes widened when he saw who was standing beside his brother. "Jo?"
She smiled and gave him a wave. "Hey, Sam."
Ellen stepped around everyone. There were tears in her eyes as she moved warily towards her daughter. "Jo, is that really you, honey?"
"Yeah, Mom, it's me," she replied, as Bobby tossed a good amount of holy water on her.
"Dude, I did that already!" Dean replied, holding in his laughter at Jo's expression.
*****
It had only been a day since the young human female had been returned to her friends, but Musgrave had placed a spell on her before she left. It would be a slow process and eventually she would be triggered to cause much destruction and chaos within Dean Winchester's life. He would be tortured as was customary in the faeries’ older practices.
Musgrave entered her dreams every night as well, conditioning her subconscious mind to readily accept the spell when it was time. With an evil smile, he began to chant.
Jo had already begun to dream when he arrived in her mind. He saw light and beauty there but that would all change.
*****
"Father! Father, where are you?" Flora exclaimed, rushing to their home. She stopped short when she saw him lying on the floor. "Father!"
Niehart’s eyes blinked open as she knelt beside him. "Flora..."
"My dear father, who did this to you?" she asked, placing her scarf on his bleeding side. "What has happened?"
"I'm all right, daughter," he told her, as he moved to sit up. "It is not a life threatening injury; I will be fine."
Flora wasn't so certain. Even though he was going to live, who would do such a thing to him? There was no one she could think of who would be capable of such evil. "Please, tell me who has done this to you, Father! The council needs to be notified."
She noted that her father seemed guarded. He was hiding something but he would not tell her. How could she help him if he wouldn’t tell her?
“Do not worry about this, Flora. I will be fine.”
*****
As soon as they knew for certain everything was as it should be and the faeries weren’t about to come after them, the hunters left for their next hunt at a lighthouse in St. Augustine, Florida.
As soon as they began their drive, Jo started having nightmares. She shared this with no one. It freaked her out that she was torturing Dean in them so she didn’t want to vocalize her fears. Besides, Dean was still getting over the trauma of fake memories implanted by the Changeling.
As Dean drove, Jo found herself being lulled to sleep by the gentle hum of the Impala, despite her vain attempts to stay awake. She swore she couldn’t have been asleep more than ten minutes before her eyes opened.
Now Sam was driving, but there was no sign of Dean. Dark clouds covered the sunlight that was attempting to get through. “Sam?” she said. “Where’s Dean?”
“Don’t worry about Dean, Jo; you already took care of him.”
“What the hell does that mean?”
Sam chuckled. “I realize you want to act like you didn’t beat the shit out of him, but you did, so get over it. Besides we’re gonna be late for the wedding.”
“What wedding?”
“Ours, of course!”
Jo blinked, and suddenly they were in a church. She glanced behind her to see familiar faces, yet most of them were supposed to be dead. They included John and Mary Winchester and her dad.
The preacher began to speak so she turned to face him. “If there is anyone here who has any reason why these two should not be married let him speak now or forever hold his peace.”
“I do!”
Sam’s eyes widened. “Dean! I thought you were dead!”
"Sorry to disappoint you little brother, but it seems I'm only mostly dead. Jo, what the hell is going on? I thought you-“
Before Jo could reply John Winchester was behind Dean pinning his arms behind his back. "Just leave it alone, son," John said. "Jo has chosen the better brother so you'll just have to get over it."
"That's right!" Jo replied, but she knew that wasn't what she had meant to say. She couldn't stop herself as she bashed Dean. "I never loved you. I only used you to get Sam," she added, putting her arms around the younger Winchester. "I love him and we're going to be together forever!"
"See," John told him, shoving him to the floor. "We never needed you. You've just been a burden to me since your mom died. It was your fault she did, by the way. You should have been a better son, but you weren't so they took her away from me and Sam."
Jo took a deep breath, trying to control what she was saying. "NO!" she finally cried out.
"Jo?" She blinked, looking up to see Sam's concerned face floating above her. Without warning, Jo swung a fist at his head. “Whoa, take it easy! Must’ve been one hell of a dream!”
“Where’s Dean?”
“Bathroom. Are you sure you’re all right, Jo?”
She nodded, sitting up. They had stopped at a gas station. “Yeah, I’m fine; just gotta go too,” Jo told him, jumping out of the car before Sam could say anything else.
Once she was in the bathroom, she turned the cold water on and splashed it in her face. That dream had felt so real and the fact that she had hurt Dean again was horrifying. Jo needed to tell them about this. What if it had to do with that Musgrave faerie Fiona had mentioned?
What if…?
A sudden spike of pain coursed through her skull and Jo dropped to the floor, clutching her head. All at once the answer came to her: she had to destroy him. A distant part of her mind was aware that this was wrong, that it didn’t make any sense-she loved Dean, why should she want to hurt him? But the impulse was just too strong, the voice inside her head too convincing. She had to do it. She had to eliminate Dean in order to make things right. She had to get rid of him once and for all, just to make the pain go away.
Sam was inside paying when Jo went to the Impala and picked the lock of the trunk. She didn’t notice Dean heading over from the bathroom. “Hey gorgeous,” he said, stepping up towards her.
Instead of replying, Jo swung the crowbar down on his head and Dean crumpled to the ground. Even though he was heavy, she made quick work of shoving him into the trunk and ran to the driver’s side. She saw a little boy staring at her with wide eyes, but just grinned as she climbed into the Impala.
Jo was pleased that Dean had taught her how to jump start a car and was quick with that as well. She slammed down on the gas pedal just as Sam was heading outside.
*****
“JO!” he exclaimed. He ran after her as fast as he could but he knew there was no way in hell he was going to catch her.
“Mister, do you know that girl?”
Sam turned to face the boy who spoke to him. “Yeah. Was there a guy with her?”
The boy nodded as he licked his ice cream cone. “She hit him real hard and put him in the trunk of her car. I guess he knew her cause he didn’t look like he was expecting it, ya know?”
“Yeah, I know,” Sam replied, with a frustrated sigh.
*****
Bobby relayed what Sam had told him to Ellen. “It’s those damn faeries again, ain’t it?” she asked, but she already knew the answer. “Think you can get that Fiona girl to do another invocation for us?”
“I should be able to do one myself now that I know what’s gotta be done. Let’s get everything together.”
Ellen nodded, feeling bad that Bobby was doing the most work getting what they needed. She was worried about what was happening with Jo and what the faeries were going to make her do to Dean. Ellen looked up at Bobby when he said her name.
“Are you ready?” He asked. When she didn’t immediately reply, Bobby pulled her into a hug. “Jo’s strong, she’ll fight this, I know! We just need to concentrate on helpin’ her before they make her do something she’s gonna regret.”
“I know, Bobby,” she replied, wiping the few tears that had escaped.
He kissed the top of her head. “All right,” Bobby said, sitting in the circle as Fiona had. Soon he began to chant.
Ellen tried to calm herself as Bobby invoked the faeries. She hoped that Musgrave guy didn’t show his face, though, because she was not in a friendly mood. She had to close her eyes as a bright flash of light lit up half the forest. When she opened them she saw a young woman standing before her.
“Greetings,” She said. “My name is Flora.”
Bobby stood up. “You know who we are?”
She nodded. “You are a friend of Dean Winchester and you are Jo Harvelle’s mother.”
“Please tell me you know of a way to help them!” Ellen said, tears in her eyes. “They’re good kids and what your people have done, are about to do…”
“I know, Ellen. It was cruel of my people and I tried so very hard to stop them. I was able to eventually, but it seems as though one of us has decided that Dean must die, despite the will of the council.”
“Musgrave."
Flora smiled sadly. “That is correct, Bobby. Musgrave put a spell on Jo that will force her to torture and eventually kill Dean.”
“How do we stop him?” Ellen asked.
“I will help you,” Flora replied.
*****
Dean woke up to a pounding headache. His hands were tied above his head and his tiptoes were barely brushing the forest ground. He didn’t see anyone around and was a bit nervous about who would have even done this to him. Dean blinked in shock when he saw Jo appear before him.
“Hey baby,” she said, an evil smirk on her lips. “Did you miss me?”
“Jo! What the hell?” She moved towards him, but didn’t respond. “Seriously, what’s going on?” Dean asked, confusion on his face.
“We’re just gonna have a little fun, Dean,” Jo told him as she pulled out what had been behind her back. She looked down at the knife in her hand and smiled as she looked up at him. "Do you recognize this?"
His vision was a bit blurry from the concussion he no doubt had, but once he really looked at the knife he did recognize it. It had belonged to her dad. "Jo, what are you doing?" Dean asked, almost afraid of the answer.
"My mom mentioned what happened between our dads. She told me that it was your father’s fault that my dad got killed so I think it's only fitting that I use his knife to kill you. And don't think it's gonna be quick, lover. Oh hell no! I'm going to take it nice and sloooow..."
Jo placed the blade on his arm and dug down from his elbow to the top of his hand. Sweat broke out on his forehead as he held in a scream.
"I know you have a high threshold for pain, Dean, but I'll break it eventually."
Dean was breathing heavily as he watched Jo step away as if admiring her handiwork. Something flashed in her eyes briefly and he knew. He knew the real Jo was still inside, fighting to get out.
“Jo,” he said, hoping she would look at him. She did, but this time there was no evil glare. It was pure Jo. “Baby, you don’t wanna do this. I know you don’t. Not because of what it’s doing to me but because you know what’s it’s doing to you!”
She blinked as a tear escaped. “Dean… I…”
“I know,” he said to her, eyes full of forgiveness. Just as Jo was about to let Dean down, she was pulled away from him. “JO!”
Musgrave laughed maniacally as he tossed Jo aside. Dean winced as her head hit a tree stump. “Well, I knew it would be too good to last, but it was fun, wasn’t it?” he asked, glancing back at Jo. “I just needed her to stall you while I got here.”
“You fucking bastard!”
“Now, now, Mr. Winchester, that is no way to talk to the man who holds your darling girlfriend’s life in his hands.”
Dean clenched his teeth. “What do you want?”
“I want you to die a slow painful death, but I’m sure you’d love to see your family first, right?"
Before Dean could reply his mom appeared, followed by his dad, Sam, Caleb, Pastor Jim, Bobby, and Ellen--the most important people in Dean Winchester’s life.
“Oh! Almost forgot!” Musgrave added, pulling Jo to her feet and waking her up with a snap of his fingers. The faerie held her while Dean’s family stepped up to him, enjoying the show.
“Mom? Dad?” Dean said.
“How could you do this to us, Dean?” John said, pulling Mary close. “You do realize you killed us both, right? You said it was the demon, but we know better. You just lied to us as an excuse to get yourself off the hook. Well that’s too damn bad, Dean!”
“What?” Dean asked, coldness seeping into his veins from the icy tone in his father’s voice. The man he had always looked up to; loved more than anyone else in the world, besides Sam. “Dad, I…”
Mary spoke up next. “Dean, you have no right to call him that. You are dead to all of us, especially Sammy. He’s always been good and always done what’s right. Sammy is our only son.”
“She’s right, Dean,” Sam said, moving to stand beside their parents. “I tried to help you, but you wouldn’t accept it. I have no choice but to move on. We’re all moving on,” he said, indicating everyone behind him.
Dean shook his head, closing his eyes. When he opened them they were gone and only Musgrave remained with a smirk on his face, holding a squirming Jo. “Don’t believe any of that, Dean!” she said.
Musgrave tightened his hold on her. “That will be enough of that, pretty Jo,” he replied, squeezing her tightly. Jo let out a small gasp at the pain. This guy was strong.
“Let her go!” Dean replied, with venom in his voice. He may have screwed up in the past but he wasn’t about to let this creepy ass faerie hurt Jo in any way.
“Oh so you do have a backbone, Winchester. I’m surprised.”
Dean glared at him. “You have me, now let her go! You can do whatever you want to me and I won’t try to escape.”
Musgrave seemed thoughtful, as if he was going to agree to Dean’s request, but finally he shook his head. “Oh no, I think of some better ways to torture you,” he said, hand slipping underneath Jo’s shirt.
Jo would have none of that, of course. Her mom had taught her how to handle prying hands. She swung her head back, making contact with Musgrave’s nose. He yelped in pain and loosened his grip on her.
“Get out of here, Jo!” Dean said, as she grabbed her knife to cut the ropes that bound him.
“I’m not gonna leave you!” she replied.
Dean looked up frantically when he saw Musgrave getting to his feet. “Please, Jo! You can’t help me if he gets you again. Go! Find Sam!”
Jo nodded, tears in her eyes. “I love you!”
“I love you too!”
With that, Jo tore off like a bat out of hell and Dean found himself face to face with the devil.
*****
Jo ran. She wasn’t sure how far she had gotten but for now that didn’t matter. She needed to find a phone. Hell, she needed to figure out where she was. Looking around, Jo spotted a sign peeking out from the bushes. She rubbed the side of her face, wincing as her hand came in contact with the bruising from being slammed into that tree.
Before she even took a step, headlights came into view. Jo ran out to the middle of the street, waving her arms. The car stopped and the couple inside exchanged a glance before both making the decision to get out. “Are you all right?” the woman asked, concern in her eyes.
“Can I… do you have a cell phone?” Jo gasped out.
The man nodded as the two stepped before her and handed the phone to her. “Did someone attack you?” he asked.
Jo didn’t answer because she was trying to remember Sam’s number. Since she couldn’t think of it, she called her mom. “Mom! Yeah, but he’s got Dean! We’re in Jackson, Mississippi. I know, but that doesn’t make me feel any better about it. Have you heard from Sam? I don’t have my cell and I can’t remember his number… I will. Love you too.”
“Honey, are you sure there isn’t anything we can do to help you?” the woman asked, as Jo disconnected from the call. “I’m a nurse so I can at least check your injury.”
“Thank you…”
“Martha.”
Jo smiled. “Martha.”
As she tended to Jo’s wound her husband, David, had grabbed some ice from the cooler. “Is there something we can do to help?” he asked.
“No,” she replied, “I just gotta wait for my friend’s brother to call. He’s a federal marshal and I know he’s in the area.”
David nodded. “All right then, we’ll stay with you until he gets here.”
“Thank you,” Jo said again, just as the phone rang. She quickly answered it. “Yeah, just before the Mayes Lakes Campgrounds. And hurry, Sam, I don’t think we have much time.”
*****
Dean was breathing heavily as Musgrave stood before him. He had tried to hold in his cries of pain but it had been difficult. Dean wanted to close his eyes, surrender to it all, but he couldn’t. He didn’t want to be the one to blink first. He was relieved when Musgrave decided to disappear for a minute. He wasn’t sure if the faerie was actually gone, but that didn’t matter because Dean needed a minute to take stock of his injuries and try to figure out a way out of this, short of being killed. His wrists were already bruised and cut from being tied and his shoulders had gone numb from the way he was hanging. The slice Jo had given him had stopped bleeding awhile ago but it seemed Musgrave decided it hadn’t been deep enough so he had given Dean a matching wound on his other arm, which was starting to look red and inflamed.
Dean was exhausted physically and mentally. He was worried sick about Jo, despite the fact that Musgrave had told him she had gotten away. The faerie kept lying to him about everything else; why would Dean believe that? He wanted to, though. He wanted her to escape and live because he had the sinking feeling that he wasn’t going to be alive for much longer.
Without warning, Musgrave appeared before him and grabbed Dean’s head as he slammed the knife into his stomach. “That, Dean Winchester, is for all the chaos you and hunters like you have caused our kind!” he said, twisting the blade. “If you are lucky enough to survive this wound then be wary, human, because the poison surely will kill you!”
Dean cried out when Musgrave yanked the knife from his stomach and disappeared. His head dropped. Through half-lidded eyes he watched in horror as blood gushed from the wound.
“Jo…” he gasped out, blood dripping from his mouth.
Dean wasn’t sure how long he would hang there as his life slowly ebbed, but the pain in his stomach was unbearable. All he wanted to do was sleep. He knew if he did close his eyes, he would probably never open them again.
“Dean! Dean, come on man, answer me!”
The voices sounded like they were far away, in a tunnel. Dean knew he had to be dreaming because Sam had made his position pretty clear, hadn’t he? His entire family had.
Dean felt relief in his entire body as someone untied his hands and laid him on the ground. When he heard Jo’s voice saying his name, he had to open his eyes. If she were here this must be real, because he knew she would always be there for him.
“Hey!” she said, smiling as tears pooled in her eyes. “Just lie still. This is Martha; she’s a nurse. She’s going to help you until the ambulance gets here.”
Dean grabbed her arm. “No! No hospitals please, Jo!”
“Dean,” Martha said, placing a hand on his arm to calm him down. “It’s all right. Let’s just see the extent of the damage and go from there, okay?” Sam and Jo exchanged glances when Dean nodded in agreement. “Good, now tell me on a scale of 1-10, how is your pain?”
Dean clenched his eyes shut. “Way more than 10,” he told her.
“Okay, I’m sorry about that, and I’m sorry to have to tell you that you need to be in a hospital, Dean. It’s obvious you don’t care for them, but if you love your brother and Jo then you’ll go.”
“I’ll go.”
Dean looked up when the sirens got louder. He heard Bobby telling them where they were and soon the EMTs were listening to Martha as she explained Dean’s injuries. Ellen had suddenly appeared and was clinging to Jo.
“Would someone like to ride with him?” one of the EMTs asked.
“Go ahead, Jo,” Sam said with a smile.
“Are you sure?”
He nodded. “Yeah, we’ll meet you there.”
“Thanks, Sam,” she replied, following Dean’s stretcher.
| CHAPTER FOUR | MASTER POST |
Author name: seramercury
Artist name: tzeni17
Genre: Het, AU
Pairing: Dean/Jo
Rating: R
Word count: 20,154 words
Warnings: language, violence, implied sexual assault
Summary: Dean Winchester and Jo Harvelle have finally found happiness--together. The Yellow-Eyed Demon is dead and things are starting to feel normal for a change. That is, until a new evil threatens to erase everything they hold dear--their relationship, their families, and their very lives.
"You didn't think I would find out did you, Niehart?" Musgrave asked. "Your daughter is as cunning as her father. I should have realized from the start that she would align herself with the human. After all, it is what her mother did."
Niehart glared at him. "You stay away from Flora and you stay away from the humans! She was able to convince the council to call the Changeling back. The human female will be returned immediately."
"Oh she did, did she?"
"She did and that means you can no longer act the way you have been," Niehart told him. "Or you will be going against the will of the council!”
Musgrave nodded as he bowed, a smirk itching to make its way to the surface of his face. He would let it go for now and once their guard was down, he would go after Dean Winchester himself, even if it was the last thing he did.
"Very well, Niehart. I will obey the council's wishes.”
*****
Meanwhile Flora had gone to check on Jo. The young human was waking up from her slumber. She looked decidedly pale and distressed. Flora knew her people were to blame and she felt horrible about it.
Taking a deep breath, she called the human by her name. Jo's head snapped up and when she saw Flora there, she glared at the faerie. "You did this! It's your fault Dean is dead!"
"No! He is not!" Flora replied. "He is very much alive and my people are going to send you back to him!"
Jo sat quietly staring at Flora as if she were trying to see through any lies the faerie was hiding. After a moment Jo was finally convinced that she was telling the truth. "Please! Send me back now!"
Flora nodded. "Good bye, Jo, and I really am sorry."
"Thank you," Jo replied with a frown and then she was gone.
*****
Dean's fever broke the next morning. When he woke up he saw Sam, Ellen, Bobby, and Fiona fast asleep on chairs all around him. Realizing the need to answer the call of nature, Dean slowly got to up, taking care not to jar his injured thigh by tripping over Sam's big feet.
While he was in the bathroom Dean decided a shower would probably help clear the cobwebs in his mind. Once that was finished, he sneaked back into the main room, grabbed some clothes, and got dressed. By the time he was finished he felt more awake than ever. Suddenly he remembered everything. It was way too hot in the room so Dean limped to the door and went outside. The moment he did, Jo appeared before him.
"Dean!" she exclaimed, wrapping her arms around him, not noticing his distress.
Dean quickly shoved her away as he took a few more steps back only to be trapped against the door. His eyes widened, stunned. "No! You're not Jo! She's dead!"
"No, I'm not, Dean! It's me! Do whatever tests you need to do to prove it, but I'm really here."
Dean again reached into his car for holy water and tossed it on her. He slowly took a step closer, wanting to hope but scared of what would happen if this really were the Changeling.
Nothing happened and Jo smiled. Dean was almost touching her face when Jo stepped forward and he wrapped his arms around her. "I am so sorry, Jo!"
"For what?" she asked, holding him tightly.
“Because I… because of what I did to you.”
She pulled him away slightly so that she was looking into his eyes. “Dean, you trust me, right?” He nodded. “Then listen to me when I say that whatever you started to remember never happened! You didn’t rape me! You would never hurt me and we both know it, right?”
Dean swallowed around the lump in his throat as he nodded again. "I know," he replied. "I love you!"
"I love you too," Jo told him.
Just then everyone took that moment to come outside. "Dean!" Sam exclaimed. His eyes widened when he saw who was standing beside his brother. "Jo?"
She smiled and gave him a wave. "Hey, Sam."
Ellen stepped around everyone. There were tears in her eyes as she moved warily towards her daughter. "Jo, is that really you, honey?"
"Yeah, Mom, it's me," she replied, as Bobby tossed a good amount of holy water on her.
"Dude, I did that already!" Dean replied, holding in his laughter at Jo's expression.
*****
It had only been a day since the young human female had been returned to her friends, but Musgrave had placed a spell on her before she left. It would be a slow process and eventually she would be triggered to cause much destruction and chaos within Dean Winchester's life. He would be tortured as was customary in the faeries’ older practices.
Musgrave entered her dreams every night as well, conditioning her subconscious mind to readily accept the spell when it was time. With an evil smile, he began to chant.
Jo had already begun to dream when he arrived in her mind. He saw light and beauty there but that would all change.
*****
"Father! Father, where are you?" Flora exclaimed, rushing to their home. She stopped short when she saw him lying on the floor. "Father!"
Niehart’s eyes blinked open as she knelt beside him. "Flora..."
"My dear father, who did this to you?" she asked, placing her scarf on his bleeding side. "What has happened?"
"I'm all right, daughter," he told her, as he moved to sit up. "It is not a life threatening injury; I will be fine."
Flora wasn't so certain. Even though he was going to live, who would do such a thing to him? There was no one she could think of who would be capable of such evil. "Please, tell me who has done this to you, Father! The council needs to be notified."
She noted that her father seemed guarded. He was hiding something but he would not tell her. How could she help him if he wouldn’t tell her?
“Do not worry about this, Flora. I will be fine.”
*****
As soon as they knew for certain everything was as it should be and the faeries weren’t about to come after them, the hunters left for their next hunt at a lighthouse in St. Augustine, Florida.
As soon as they began their drive, Jo started having nightmares. She shared this with no one. It freaked her out that she was torturing Dean in them so she didn’t want to vocalize her fears. Besides, Dean was still getting over the trauma of fake memories implanted by the Changeling.
As Dean drove, Jo found herself being lulled to sleep by the gentle hum of the Impala, despite her vain attempts to stay awake. She swore she couldn’t have been asleep more than ten minutes before her eyes opened.
Now Sam was driving, but there was no sign of Dean. Dark clouds covered the sunlight that was attempting to get through. “Sam?” she said. “Where’s Dean?”
“Don’t worry about Dean, Jo; you already took care of him.”
“What the hell does that mean?”
Sam chuckled. “I realize you want to act like you didn’t beat the shit out of him, but you did, so get over it. Besides we’re gonna be late for the wedding.”
“What wedding?”
“Ours, of course!”
Jo blinked, and suddenly they were in a church. She glanced behind her to see familiar faces, yet most of them were supposed to be dead. They included John and Mary Winchester and her dad.
The preacher began to speak so she turned to face him. “If there is anyone here who has any reason why these two should not be married let him speak now or forever hold his peace.”
“I do!”
Sam’s eyes widened. “Dean! I thought you were dead!”
"Sorry to disappoint you little brother, but it seems I'm only mostly dead. Jo, what the hell is going on? I thought you-“
Before Jo could reply John Winchester was behind Dean pinning his arms behind his back. "Just leave it alone, son," John said. "Jo has chosen the better brother so you'll just have to get over it."
"That's right!" Jo replied, but she knew that wasn't what she had meant to say. She couldn't stop herself as she bashed Dean. "I never loved you. I only used you to get Sam," she added, putting her arms around the younger Winchester. "I love him and we're going to be together forever!"
"See," John told him, shoving him to the floor. "We never needed you. You've just been a burden to me since your mom died. It was your fault she did, by the way. You should have been a better son, but you weren't so they took her away from me and Sam."
Jo took a deep breath, trying to control what she was saying. "NO!" she finally cried out.
"Jo?" She blinked, looking up to see Sam's concerned face floating above her. Without warning, Jo swung a fist at his head. “Whoa, take it easy! Must’ve been one hell of a dream!”
“Where’s Dean?”
“Bathroom. Are you sure you’re all right, Jo?”
She nodded, sitting up. They had stopped at a gas station. “Yeah, I’m fine; just gotta go too,” Jo told him, jumping out of the car before Sam could say anything else.
Once she was in the bathroom, she turned the cold water on and splashed it in her face. That dream had felt so real and the fact that she had hurt Dean again was horrifying. Jo needed to tell them about this. What if it had to do with that Musgrave faerie Fiona had mentioned?
What if…?
A sudden spike of pain coursed through her skull and Jo dropped to the floor, clutching her head. All at once the answer came to her: she had to destroy him. A distant part of her mind was aware that this was wrong, that it didn’t make any sense-she loved Dean, why should she want to hurt him? But the impulse was just too strong, the voice inside her head too convincing. She had to do it. She had to eliminate Dean in order to make things right. She had to get rid of him once and for all, just to make the pain go away.
Sam was inside paying when Jo went to the Impala and picked the lock of the trunk. She didn’t notice Dean heading over from the bathroom. “Hey gorgeous,” he said, stepping up towards her.
Instead of replying, Jo swung the crowbar down on his head and Dean crumpled to the ground. Even though he was heavy, she made quick work of shoving him into the trunk and ran to the driver’s side. She saw a little boy staring at her with wide eyes, but just grinned as she climbed into the Impala.
Jo was pleased that Dean had taught her how to jump start a car and was quick with that as well. She slammed down on the gas pedal just as Sam was heading outside.
*****
“JO!” he exclaimed. He ran after her as fast as he could but he knew there was no way in hell he was going to catch her.
“Mister, do you know that girl?”
Sam turned to face the boy who spoke to him. “Yeah. Was there a guy with her?”
The boy nodded as he licked his ice cream cone. “She hit him real hard and put him in the trunk of her car. I guess he knew her cause he didn’t look like he was expecting it, ya know?”
“Yeah, I know,” Sam replied, with a frustrated sigh.
*****
Bobby relayed what Sam had told him to Ellen. “It’s those damn faeries again, ain’t it?” she asked, but she already knew the answer. “Think you can get that Fiona girl to do another invocation for us?”
“I should be able to do one myself now that I know what’s gotta be done. Let’s get everything together.”
Ellen nodded, feeling bad that Bobby was doing the most work getting what they needed. She was worried about what was happening with Jo and what the faeries were going to make her do to Dean. Ellen looked up at Bobby when he said her name.
“Are you ready?” He asked. When she didn’t immediately reply, Bobby pulled her into a hug. “Jo’s strong, she’ll fight this, I know! We just need to concentrate on helpin’ her before they make her do something she’s gonna regret.”
“I know, Bobby,” she replied, wiping the few tears that had escaped.
He kissed the top of her head. “All right,” Bobby said, sitting in the circle as Fiona had. Soon he began to chant.
Ellen tried to calm herself as Bobby invoked the faeries. She hoped that Musgrave guy didn’t show his face, though, because she was not in a friendly mood. She had to close her eyes as a bright flash of light lit up half the forest. When she opened them she saw a young woman standing before her.
“Greetings,” She said. “My name is Flora.”
Bobby stood up. “You know who we are?”
She nodded. “You are a friend of Dean Winchester and you are Jo Harvelle’s mother.”
“Please tell me you know of a way to help them!” Ellen said, tears in her eyes. “They’re good kids and what your people have done, are about to do…”
“I know, Ellen. It was cruel of my people and I tried so very hard to stop them. I was able to eventually, but it seems as though one of us has decided that Dean must die, despite the will of the council.”
“Musgrave."
Flora smiled sadly. “That is correct, Bobby. Musgrave put a spell on Jo that will force her to torture and eventually kill Dean.”
“How do we stop him?” Ellen asked.
“I will help you,” Flora replied.
*****
Dean woke up to a pounding headache. His hands were tied above his head and his tiptoes were barely brushing the forest ground. He didn’t see anyone around and was a bit nervous about who would have even done this to him. Dean blinked in shock when he saw Jo appear before him.
“Hey baby,” she said, an evil smirk on her lips. “Did you miss me?”
“Jo! What the hell?” She moved towards him, but didn’t respond. “Seriously, what’s going on?” Dean asked, confusion on his face.
“We’re just gonna have a little fun, Dean,” Jo told him as she pulled out what had been behind her back. She looked down at the knife in her hand and smiled as she looked up at him. "Do you recognize this?"
His vision was a bit blurry from the concussion he no doubt had, but once he really looked at the knife he did recognize it. It had belonged to her dad. "Jo, what are you doing?" Dean asked, almost afraid of the answer.
"My mom mentioned what happened between our dads. She told me that it was your father’s fault that my dad got killed so I think it's only fitting that I use his knife to kill you. And don't think it's gonna be quick, lover. Oh hell no! I'm going to take it nice and sloooow..."
Jo placed the blade on his arm and dug down from his elbow to the top of his hand. Sweat broke out on his forehead as he held in a scream.
"I know you have a high threshold for pain, Dean, but I'll break it eventually."
Dean was breathing heavily as he watched Jo step away as if admiring her handiwork. Something flashed in her eyes briefly and he knew. He knew the real Jo was still inside, fighting to get out.
“Jo,” he said, hoping she would look at him. She did, but this time there was no evil glare. It was pure Jo. “Baby, you don’t wanna do this. I know you don’t. Not because of what it’s doing to me but because you know what’s it’s doing to you!”
She blinked as a tear escaped. “Dean… I…”
“I know,” he said to her, eyes full of forgiveness. Just as Jo was about to let Dean down, she was pulled away from him. “JO!”
Musgrave laughed maniacally as he tossed Jo aside. Dean winced as her head hit a tree stump. “Well, I knew it would be too good to last, but it was fun, wasn’t it?” he asked, glancing back at Jo. “I just needed her to stall you while I got here.”
“You fucking bastard!”
“Now, now, Mr. Winchester, that is no way to talk to the man who holds your darling girlfriend’s life in his hands.”
Dean clenched his teeth. “What do you want?”
“I want you to die a slow painful death, but I’m sure you’d love to see your family first, right?"
Before Dean could reply his mom appeared, followed by his dad, Sam, Caleb, Pastor Jim, Bobby, and Ellen--the most important people in Dean Winchester’s life.
“Oh! Almost forgot!” Musgrave added, pulling Jo to her feet and waking her up with a snap of his fingers. The faerie held her while Dean’s family stepped up to him, enjoying the show.
“Mom? Dad?” Dean said.
“How could you do this to us, Dean?” John said, pulling Mary close. “You do realize you killed us both, right? You said it was the demon, but we know better. You just lied to us as an excuse to get yourself off the hook. Well that’s too damn bad, Dean!”
“What?” Dean asked, coldness seeping into his veins from the icy tone in his father’s voice. The man he had always looked up to; loved more than anyone else in the world, besides Sam. “Dad, I…”
Mary spoke up next. “Dean, you have no right to call him that. You are dead to all of us, especially Sammy. He’s always been good and always done what’s right. Sammy is our only son.”
“She’s right, Dean,” Sam said, moving to stand beside their parents. “I tried to help you, but you wouldn’t accept it. I have no choice but to move on. We’re all moving on,” he said, indicating everyone behind him.
Dean shook his head, closing his eyes. When he opened them they were gone and only Musgrave remained with a smirk on his face, holding a squirming Jo. “Don’t believe any of that, Dean!” she said.
Musgrave tightened his hold on her. “That will be enough of that, pretty Jo,” he replied, squeezing her tightly. Jo let out a small gasp at the pain. This guy was strong.
“Let her go!” Dean replied, with venom in his voice. He may have screwed up in the past but he wasn’t about to let this creepy ass faerie hurt Jo in any way.
“Oh so you do have a backbone, Winchester. I’m surprised.”
Dean glared at him. “You have me, now let her go! You can do whatever you want to me and I won’t try to escape.”
Musgrave seemed thoughtful, as if he was going to agree to Dean’s request, but finally he shook his head. “Oh no, I think of some better ways to torture you,” he said, hand slipping underneath Jo’s shirt.
Jo would have none of that, of course. Her mom had taught her how to handle prying hands. She swung her head back, making contact with Musgrave’s nose. He yelped in pain and loosened his grip on her.
“Get out of here, Jo!” Dean said, as she grabbed her knife to cut the ropes that bound him.
“I’m not gonna leave you!” she replied.
Dean looked up frantically when he saw Musgrave getting to his feet. “Please, Jo! You can’t help me if he gets you again. Go! Find Sam!”
Jo nodded, tears in her eyes. “I love you!”
“I love you too!”
With that, Jo tore off like a bat out of hell and Dean found himself face to face with the devil.
*****
Jo ran. She wasn’t sure how far she had gotten but for now that didn’t matter. She needed to find a phone. Hell, she needed to figure out where she was. Looking around, Jo spotted a sign peeking out from the bushes. She rubbed the side of her face, wincing as her hand came in contact with the bruising from being slammed into that tree.
Before she even took a step, headlights came into view. Jo ran out to the middle of the street, waving her arms. The car stopped and the couple inside exchanged a glance before both making the decision to get out. “Are you all right?” the woman asked, concern in her eyes.
“Can I… do you have a cell phone?” Jo gasped out.
The man nodded as the two stepped before her and handed the phone to her. “Did someone attack you?” he asked.
Jo didn’t answer because she was trying to remember Sam’s number. Since she couldn’t think of it, she called her mom. “Mom! Yeah, but he’s got Dean! We’re in Jackson, Mississippi. I know, but that doesn’t make me feel any better about it. Have you heard from Sam? I don’t have my cell and I can’t remember his number… I will. Love you too.”
“Honey, are you sure there isn’t anything we can do to help you?” the woman asked, as Jo disconnected from the call. “I’m a nurse so I can at least check your injury.”
“Thank you…”
“Martha.”
Jo smiled. “Martha.”
As she tended to Jo’s wound her husband, David, had grabbed some ice from the cooler. “Is there something we can do to help?” he asked.
“No,” she replied, “I just gotta wait for my friend’s brother to call. He’s a federal marshal and I know he’s in the area.”
David nodded. “All right then, we’ll stay with you until he gets here.”
“Thank you,” Jo said again, just as the phone rang. She quickly answered it. “Yeah, just before the Mayes Lakes Campgrounds. And hurry, Sam, I don’t think we have much time.”
*****
Dean was breathing heavily as Musgrave stood before him. He had tried to hold in his cries of pain but it had been difficult. Dean wanted to close his eyes, surrender to it all, but he couldn’t. He didn’t want to be the one to blink first. He was relieved when Musgrave decided to disappear for a minute. He wasn’t sure if the faerie was actually gone, but that didn’t matter because Dean needed a minute to take stock of his injuries and try to figure out a way out of this, short of being killed. His wrists were already bruised and cut from being tied and his shoulders had gone numb from the way he was hanging. The slice Jo had given him had stopped bleeding awhile ago but it seemed Musgrave decided it hadn’t been deep enough so he had given Dean a matching wound on his other arm, which was starting to look red and inflamed.
Dean was exhausted physically and mentally. He was worried sick about Jo, despite the fact that Musgrave had told him she had gotten away. The faerie kept lying to him about everything else; why would Dean believe that? He wanted to, though. He wanted her to escape and live because he had the sinking feeling that he wasn’t going to be alive for much longer.
Without warning, Musgrave appeared before him and grabbed Dean’s head as he slammed the knife into his stomach. “That, Dean Winchester, is for all the chaos you and hunters like you have caused our kind!” he said, twisting the blade. “If you are lucky enough to survive this wound then be wary, human, because the poison surely will kill you!”
Dean cried out when Musgrave yanked the knife from his stomach and disappeared. His head dropped. Through half-lidded eyes he watched in horror as blood gushed from the wound.
“Jo…” he gasped out, blood dripping from his mouth.
Dean wasn’t sure how long he would hang there as his life slowly ebbed, but the pain in his stomach was unbearable. All he wanted to do was sleep. He knew if he did close his eyes, he would probably never open them again.
“Dean! Dean, come on man, answer me!”
The voices sounded like they were far away, in a tunnel. Dean knew he had to be dreaming because Sam had made his position pretty clear, hadn’t he? His entire family had.
Dean felt relief in his entire body as someone untied his hands and laid him on the ground. When he heard Jo’s voice saying his name, he had to open his eyes. If she were here this must be real, because he knew she would always be there for him.
“Hey!” she said, smiling as tears pooled in her eyes. “Just lie still. This is Martha; she’s a nurse. She’s going to help you until the ambulance gets here.”
Dean grabbed her arm. “No! No hospitals please, Jo!”
“Dean,” Martha said, placing a hand on his arm to calm him down. “It’s all right. Let’s just see the extent of the damage and go from there, okay?” Sam and Jo exchanged glances when Dean nodded in agreement. “Good, now tell me on a scale of 1-10, how is your pain?”
Dean clenched his eyes shut. “Way more than 10,” he told her.
“Okay, I’m sorry about that, and I’m sorry to have to tell you that you need to be in a hospital, Dean. It’s obvious you don’t care for them, but if you love your brother and Jo then you’ll go.”
“I’ll go.”
Dean looked up when the sirens got louder. He heard Bobby telling them where they were and soon the EMTs were listening to Martha as she explained Dean’s injuries. Ellen had suddenly appeared and was clinging to Jo.
“Would someone like to ride with him?” one of the EMTs asked.
“Go ahead, Jo,” Sam said with a smile.
“Are you sure?”
He nodded. “Yeah, we’ll meet you there.”
“Thanks, Sam,” she replied, following Dean’s stretcher.
| CHAPTER FOUR | MASTER POST |